Visiting the Moon ....... across the centuries

 I can never quite get to like the final scene from the silent film, A Trip to the Moon which was released in 1902 but it fits well with the first of a series of reissued programmes from In Our Time.

A Trip to the Moon, 1902

In Our Time has been running since 1998 and remains one of the jewels of Radio 4.

"After 27 years, Melvyn Bragg has decided to step down from the In Our Time presenter’s chair. 

With over a thousand episodes to choose from, he has selected just six that capture the huge range and depth of the subjects he and his experts have tackled. 

In this first pick, we hear Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the origins, science and mythology of the moon.

Humans have been fascinated by our only known satellite since prehistory. In some cultures the Moon has been worshipped as a deity; in recent centuries there has been lively debate about its origins and physical characteristics. 

Although other planets in our solar system have moons ours is, relatively speaking, the largest, and is perhaps more accurately described as a 'twin planet'; the past, present and future of the Earth and the Moon are locked together. Only very recently has water been found on the Moon - a discovery which could prove to be invaluable if human colonisation of the Moon were ever to occur.

Mankind first walked on the Moon in 1969, but it is debatable how important this huge political event was in developing our scientific knowledge. The advances of space science, including data from satellites and the moon landings, have given us some startling insights into the history of our own planet, but many intriguing questions remain unanswered.

With; Paul Murdin, Visiting Professor of Astronomy at Liverpool John Moores University, Carolin Crawford, Gresham Professor of Astronomy at the University of Cambridge,Ian Crawford

Reader in Planetary Science and Astrobiology at Birkbeck College, London.

Producer: Natalia Fernandez

Earthrise, 1968

Spanning history, religion, culture, science and philosophy, In Our Time from BBC Radio 4 is essential listening for the intellectually curious. In each episode, host Melvyn Bragg and expert guests explore the characters, events and discoveries that have shaped our world".

Leaving me just to add that my Wikipedia tells me that Trip to the Moon "is a 1902 French science-fiction adventure trick film written, directed, and produced by Georges Méliès. Inspired by the Jules Verne novel 

From the Earth to the Moon (1865) and its sequel Around the Moon (1870), the film follows a group of astronomers who travel to the Moon in a cannon-propelled capsule, explore the Moon's surface, escape from an underground group of Selenites (lunar inhabitants), and return to Earth with a captive Selenite. Méliès leads an ensemble cast of French theatrical performers as the main character Professor Barbenfouillis.".

And that pretty much covers all bases.

Pictures; Screenshot from A Trip to the Moon), 1902, Georges MélièsEarth,  Earth Rise, as photographed by Bill Anders 110 km above the Moon, on 24 December 1968 during Apollo 8

*The Moon, Radio 4, In Our Time, https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b016lh15

**A Trip to the Moon, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Trip_to_the_Moon